Some National Parks are being overwhelmed by trash, vandalism, human feces and destructive off-roading while most personnel are gone during the government shutdown, according to reports from remaining workers and visitors. Now areas and entire parks are being closed because of garbage, human waste — and snow. Utah had been paying to staff up all five of its national parks but will continue to staff only Zion in the new year, AP reported. A National Park Service notice posted at the top of each park’s website now warns that even updates won’t be available because of lack of staffing. John Garder, senior budget director of the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association, called the situation a “nightmare scenario” that could impact visitor safety — and significantly damage natural resources.

Source: Huffington Post January 01, 2019 09:33 UTC